Thursday, March 15, 2007

Firefox Nibblets

Firekeeper (extension) - According to the developer it is "...an Intrusion Detection and Prevention System for Firefox. It is able to detect, block and warn the user about malicious sites. Firekeeper uses flexible rules similar to Snort ones to describe browser based attack attempts. Rules can also be used to effectively filter different kinds of unwanted content."

While still in early "alpha" development, I really like the promise of this one. Unlike traditional browser-based malware protection, this gem loads into Firefox and scans your Firefox-based browsing traffic for suspicious content and behaviors. It will use blacklists, whitelists, and default rule settings.

Since it is based on the security-community's little favorite intrusion detection system piggie--Snort--it should have a very robust foundation. And the developer promises to keep the rules very simple. (Firekeeper screenshots)

I'll be keeping my eye on this one...and trying to hook it up with my Firefox 3.0 build over the weekend.

It uses Firefox's built in password tool, but disallows the pre-filling of forms. Instead when you land on a login page, you can hover over the tool icon which will then display the actual login URL and the login accounts you have established with it. Select the one you want and it will fill in.

It works to enhance security by controlling Firefox's sometimes bad behavior of pre-filling in JavaScripted login forms with incorrect data. Also, it will check to see if the 2nd level domain of the login URL matches the 2nd level domain of the current page. If not you will be warned before being allowed to continue. You can also control optional settings for all JavaScript code during logins to prevent cross-site scripting attacks.

Overall it is a very clever and secure solution for web-based login-form management.

I'm just now trying to get used to it, so it takes some time to learn and configure...but I think I will grow to like it.

#3

Make Link (extension) - Sweet little Firefox extension allows you to grab a web-link and paste it, properly formatted, into comments or a forum. It can save time and increase accuracy to make sure you don't flub a link-to!

I already use a similar extension, CoLT (Copy Link Text). But it's weakness is that it only copies URL's. If you want to copy/select/format non-linked text on a page and associate it with the page...you are out of luck.

I had been using Copy URL+ to accomplish that task, but it hadn't been playing as well with Firefox 2.0 so I dropped it.

However, Make Link does support the user copying a non-linked selection, but still associating it with the URL of the page. Nice!

2 comments:

It's just a little thing, granted, but why can't people take a second to spell check their work?

Case in point, under the help file, Variables, the fellow that wrote Make Link spelled it "recognises" and that's just 'rong! It always makes me a tad hesitant to deal with someone who's unprofessional especially if any money is to change hands. I'd don't subscribe to the "you get what you pay for" in this case either. I guess I'm just getting cranky in my old age...

I hear you, TxGoodie! And "No" I wouldn't call you cranky about that at all!

I can cut a fair bit of slack for folks posting comments and making some spelling errors or using some loose grammatical sense. Seems like the place for being "spontaneous" and not everyone uses spell-check supported software on the web.

Goodness knows, I use it Firefox and in Windows Live Writer when blogging and I still miss some when I get rushed.

I for one have been battling "run-on" sentences since my high-school creative writing classes! At work I'm a pro at editing copy for the company documentations I manage...but at home (and on the blog)...well...I guess I let my buzz-cut hair down a bit.

I'm really getting a lot of enjoyment and re-education out of the Word Wise blog, have you seen it?

I'm now struggling with this post of Dan's: Spaced Out. That is another bane of mine... As a classically trained high-school typing class speed touch-typist, double-spacing after each sentence is deeply drilled habit. I may never shed that one!

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Why this? It is the simple blog of a Last Exile fan and is intended to express the enjoyment we derive from studio Gonzo's production. Although we closely relate with those characters, we aren't them in real life. We just want to keep the memory of these incredible young kids alive. So go buy Gonzo's Last Exile DVD's!